sprinkle the toast with derision

Yesterday I went to bed at 19h15 even though it was still daylight out. I managed to fall asleep quickly just the same.

I awoke this morning at 2h50 ish, ate some toast with jam and got a couple of PB&J sandwiches made and collected some snacks; then headed out, early, for the 354 night bus that was scheduled to stop at my stop at 3h57. I got there at 3h42 and the bus arrived at 4h02. There were no other passengers when I got on, and no other passenger got on after me. What I found interesting about this 354 ride was that the driver had a co-pilot who engaged him in conversation throughout the time I was in the bus. From what I could tell it wasn't work related conversations; it could be this is a new policy for the night drivers, to help them keep awake.

The 354 takes me all the way to Atwater and Ste-Catherine; from there I walked to Berri, to the bus terminus. I got there at 5h23, queued up, got on the bus at 5h44 and then the bus left, on time, at 6h. The walk through the city was interesting in that it was at a time of day where there were very few people out on the city streets. Still, I managed to see two homeless people having a conversation; a couple of people walking their dog, and a handful of police officers each in different places.

On the ticket, this first bus was to have taken me to Ste-Foy, but instead, it drove to Quebec City centre-ville. I was under the impression that I would have to switch buses, but no, the bus I was on ended up going all the way to Riviére du Loup. The bus got there (Riviére du Loup) at 11h50, and the Maritime Bus I was to take would only leave at 13h. That bus, and the driver, were already there when we arrived, but she didn't let us get on until 12h43 or so. The bus rides were painless; on the way from home to Quebec City I managed to work more on my presentation for the conference next week. On the ride from Quebec City to Riviére du Loup I managed to sleep a little. On the ride from Riviére du Loup to Edmundston I mostly just looked out the window while listening to music.

While waiting between bus routes, quite a number of people smoked. Since you can't smoke on the buses, and since the rides are as long as they are; I guess these smokers tried to get in as many as they could during these breaks. I found a spot upwind of them and read while waiting for the bus to depart.

The bus got to Edmundston by 15h21 (ADT) and from there I located the Trans Canada Trail to walk the roughly 5KM from where the bus let me off to where the garage was where the van had been repaired. It was nice to not have to walk on the street sharing the road with cars. It was a well groomed trail and I encountered a few cyclists, who, curiously, all came from the opposing direction.

The repairs on the van that had been done ended up being rather exorbitant in price; though it included a hefty towing fee and an unplanned for battery replacement.

I stopped for fuel about a half hour after having left the repair shop and when I went to get back into the van I found that I could not open the driver's door. The visible lock mechanism was clearly in the unlocked position, but no matter how I yanked, the door wouldn't open. None of the other doors were unlocked as it hadn't occurred to me that I would need to unlock them when I exited to pump the gas. Fortunately, I tried again and it worked.

The drive home was easy enough; I had the van in cruise control almost the whole way. I stopped in Montmagny at a McDo to stretch a little, eat, and have the drink from my combo to sip on the remaining leg of my journey. At the McDo I tried jimmying with the door and the lock a little bit; but it seems that it is perfectly defunct; the only way to open the driver's door is from the inside. Whether it shows as locked or unlocked, it is un-openable from the outside. I am heading off on a trip the day after tomorrow and will be gone for a week, so this last problem I will only address once I get back. In fact, dealing with this is manageable in the summer; but once winter comes I think I will want to have this repaired.

I ended up getting home by about 21h45. I had a couple of errands to run and now, at 23h43; as I write this last sentence; it is time for me to get to sleep.